Thomas Sowell has a long essay on writing on his website www.tsowell.com. This section on book reviews that he terms the non-reviewing review caught my eye.
The non-reviewing review seems to be considered chic these days. The first
four or five paragraphs don?t even mention the book that is the ostensible reason
for the review. Instead, the reviewer puts the whole subject ?in context? with
lofty generalities and pre-emptive assertions. Then the book?s title puts in
a cameo appearance, followed by an analysis of what the author was ?really?
trying to do and the reviewer?s comments on its appropriateness, originality,
and consonance with his own ideological predispositions….In the broadcast version of the non-reviewing review, the talk-show host conceals
his non-reading of the book by keeping the author on the defensive with a steady
stream of cutting accusations, based on the author?s general reputation or previous
writings. The writer may be accused of anything from political bias to personal
dishonesty, or any other charge that will lead to a heated, time-filling discussion.
The natural tendency to defend yourself against a low blow is what gets authors
sucked into this game….Only after several talk-show hosts had played this game on me did I finally
realize what was happening, and why. I counter-attacked on one of those long,
night-time radio talk shows, when it became obvious that neither the host nor
the critic on with me had read the book. At the end of the first hour, I announced
to the listeners that we had now been on the air for one hour?and that neither
of my questioners had yet mentioned a single thing that was actually in the
book. Moreover, I predicted that neither of them would say anything in the second
hour that would refer to anything in the book, because it was apparent that
neither of them had read it.
And this is the way Sowell handles “60 Minutes.”
Not only can the host lift what you said out of context; he can also splice
in what your enemies have said about you, without your having an opportunity
to reply. Television?s ?Sixty Minutes? is a master of this technique, among
others. Once Mike Wallace asked me to be a guest on the show, pointing out what
a wonderful opportunity it would be for me to get my message out to a huge audience.
I replied that I would be delighted to go one-on-one with him anytime, provided
that everything we said was broadcast just as we said it. He looked so pained
at my distrust that I almost believed him.
It is no surprise that you don’t see him on “60 Minutes.”
